Park Terrace Elementary
Greetings Park Terrace Families,
Our Park Terrace staff are excited for school to begin! Teachers have been preparing their classrooms, reading students’ learner profiles, and designing engaging lessons to kick off the year.
We have also been thrilled to welcome our youngest students to Park Terrace during Kinder Camp this week! About 50 students have been participating in Kinder Camp, which is a low stress way for our kindergarten students to get to know the building, our staff, and school routines. The students have had a blast, and they can’t wait to start kindergarten!
This week, we also welcomed our new staff to Park Terrace. They have learned about our students, our vision as a part of Spring Lake Park Schools, and have spent time getting ready for the school year.
Each of our new staff bring a wide and deep experience in education. Please join me in welcoming them:
- Melissa Bunker, Kindergarten Teacher
- Clare Gallahue, Second Grade Teacher
- Mikayla Williams, Third Grade Teacher
- Ben Antony, Physical Education Teacher
- John Vogel, Physical Education and Science Teacher
- Steph Dalen, Science Teacher
Phones and Smart Watches
As we get ready for the year, please plan for your child to leave their phone or smart watch at home during the school day. If your child does bring these types of items to school, they will need to store them in their backpack or leave them in the office for the day. If you need to reach your child during the day, it’s best to call the main office. This helps us avoid disruptions to learning.
Meet your teacher – Wednesday, August 28
We will be hosting a meet and greet event at Park Terrace Elementary on Wednesday, August 28, 4-6 p.m. You’ll be able to find out your child’s teacher at this event or you may view your child’s teacher on Campus Parent Portal on Wednesday morning before the meet and greet. For anyone that would benefit from sensory accommodations, noise cancelling headphones and quiet spaces will be available during this event. If you are able, please come at the designated time:
- 4-5 p.m. – students with last names starting with A-M
- 5-6 p.m. – students with the last names starting with N-Z
PTA
Are you looking for a way to get involved at Park Terrace? We would love to have you join our Parent Teacher Association. If you have an interest in joining this network of teachers, families, and administrators in having a voice in the educational success for each student, please reach out to Aaron Chretien at achret@district16.org.
Looking Ahead
- Passport to Learning event: We will have a Passport to Learning event on Wednesday, October 2, 5:30-7 p.m. This is an opportunity for families and students to travel through the school to learn about our curricular resources and explore a day in the life of a student. We hope to see you there!
- Picture Days: Mark your calendar now for fall picture days! Picture days are Thursday, October 10 and Friday, October 11. Picture retake day is Tuesday, November 5.
We hope you enjoy these last few days of summer – and I can’t wait to see you all soon! If you have any questions, please reach out!
Thank you,
Lindsay
Back to School hub
If you haven't done so already, make sure you check out the Back to School hub to find important information and resources as you prepare for the year and answers to your frequently asked questions to help you stay on top of your back-to-school to do list.
Hub highlights:
- School Supply Lists
- Meet and Greet dates and times
- How to prepare your iPad for the new school year
- How to update your contact information to ensure you receive communication throughout the school year
- and more!
Health office updates for back to school
- School medications: You are welcome and encouraged to bring in any necessary medications for your student to keep at school during next week's Meet and Greet. Our health office will be available to answer questions during this event. If you would like to drop off medications outside of Meet and Greet, please set up a time with our nurse, Jenn Hansen at 763-600-5604.
- Immunizations and vaccines: Now is the time to make sure your child is up to date on all recommended immunizations. Getting vaccinated is an important tool to keep our students safe and healthy while they are in school. See our website for more immunization information.
- Peanut/nut aware classrooms: Spring Lake Park Schools continues to implement peanut and nut-aware practices to protect students with severe allergies. Parents are asked to avoid sending snacks containing nuts or nut products and to ensure all snacks are pre-packaged for safety checks. This effort aims to create a safe environment for all students. Learn more on our Health Services webpage.
- Communicate illnesses: Please continue to update the school nurse if your child tests positive for a communicable illness such as flu, RSV (Respiratory Syncitial Virus), or COVID-19. The nurse will provide information on return to school. Please keep your child home if they are sick.
- Communication home: Our school nurse will call home in case of serious illness or injury, or if consultation with a parent/guardian is needed. Many times, students can return to class after a brief rest or treatment from the nurse.
Get Ready to "Start Your Engines"
The 3rd Annual "Start Your Engines" Big Trucks, Food Trucks & Automobiles event is Saturday, September 14 from 11 a.m.- 1:30 p.m. at Spring Lake Park High School.
This family/community event will feature a variety of exhibits with engines – think big trucks, automobiles, and recreational vehicles. Lunch from the food trucks will be available for purchase. The event is free to attend, and no registration is required - just show up!
Featured Food Trucks:
- Pigs Unlimited
- Turkey King
- 9 Yum Yum
- Eastern Star
Other event features:
- Panther Store Pop-Up Sale
- We are accepting bike donations for Bikes4Kids
- There will be a booth that showcases all of our Community Education fall offerings for youth, families, and adults. Make sure to stop by and sign up!
Fall programs available for all!
The start of a new school year brings new and exciting fall Community Education programming options for the entire family! As we kick off the new year, now is the perfect time to explore interests, discover passions, learn a new skill and connect with others within our Panther community. Registration is officially open. Browse and register for a variety of enrichment and learning youth, adult and family opportunities.
